“We analyze 50 years of regional weather patterns to determine the
proper type of antenna, radio frequency output, and broadcast distance
to ensure we receive 99.999% uptime on all of our links”

Thanks to the commitment of Ditchfield’s team and their understanding of
the importance of high-speed broadband for California research and
education communities, and their strategy for reaching those with
limited or no broadband access due to remote locations and challenging
terrain, CENIC and GeoLinks have been able to move forward on numerous
initiatives in support of these underserved communities.

Dozens of projects have been completed, are in progress, or are
anticipated that will serve K-12 schools, the University of California’s
Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) research sites,
and public libraries throughout the state. Previously, a number of these
sites were served at speeds of 1.5 Mbps or less. Most now have 50 to 100
times greater speeds as a result of these efforts.

CENIC President and CEO Louis Fox stated, “GeoLinks has become an
important ally in our efforts to address broadband-access inequities in
California. Together we are hard at work on public policy initiatives
that, we hope, will bring more resources to California, and thereby
bring the benefits of advanced networking to all Californians at their
community anchor institutions – schools, libraries, health care, and
research sites. CENIC looks forward to a long collaboration with Skyler
and his team to ensure that California remains at the global forefront
of innovation in research and education networking.”

Fox added, “As CENIC has historically focused on fiber-network
deployments, I was skeptical at first about using fixed wireless, but
GeoLinks has demonstrated that they can deliver gigabit speeds with
symmetrical services to remote sites that have no access to fiber-optic
networks. Even with the significant special construction necessary, they
have delivered these services within 9 to 12 months, which is
remarkable.”

GeoLinks’ fixed wireless network, ClearFiber™,
uses carrier-grade equipment and provides telecom-grade broadband
service with the same latency and jitter as fiber. GeoLinks is able to
build solar- and wind-powered telecommunications facilities off the
grid, resulting in rapid network deployment in a fraction of the time
and for a fraction of the cost of fiber. ClearFiber uses FCC-licensed
spectrum with redundancy at every level of hardware deployment.

“We analyze 50 years of regional weather patterns to determine the
proper type of antenna, radio frequency output, and broadcast distance
to ensure we receive 99.999% uptime on all of our links,” further
explained GeoLinks CEO Skyler Ditchfield. “We also use this data to
determine how much solar energy is needed for each individual site. As a
standard, we engineer our sites to run for 25 days without sunlight to
safeguard against extreme weather events. Furthermore, we also build in
redundancy at every level, from our power equipment, to our routers,
switches, and radios. We are also currently in the early stages of
experimenting with wind energy. While solar power is typically low
during storms, wind is high on mountain tops and can thus reduce the
need for solar panel and battery load, ultimately reducing overall
deployment costs.”

Recognized as thought-leaders in closing the digital divide, the
GeoLinks leadership team proudly serves on an array of national boards,
coalitions, and working groups including the Schools, Healthcare and
Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition, the Wireless Internet Service
Providers Association (WISPA), the Broadband Consortium of the Pacific
Coast (BCPC), and the FCC’s Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee’s
(BDAC) Streamlining Federal Siting Working Group.

The CENIC Innovations in Networking Awards are presented each year at
CENIC’s annual conference to highlight exemplary innovations that
leverage ultra-high bandwidth networking, particularly where those
innovations have the potential to transform how education and research
are conducted or where they further the deployment of broadband in
underserved areas. The CENIC conference will be held March 5 – 7, 2018,
in Monterey, California.

CENIC connects California to the world — advancing education and
research statewide by providing the world-class network essential for
innovation, collaboration, and economic growth. This nonprofit
organization operates the California Research and Education Network
(CalREN), a high-capacity network designed to meet the unique
requirements of over 20 million users, including the vast majority of
K-20 students together with educators, researchers, and individuals at
other vital public-serving institutions. CENIC’s Charter Associates are
part of the world’s largest education system; they include the
California K-12 system, California Community Colleges, the California
State University system, California’s public libraries, the University
of California system, Stanford, Caltech, the Naval Postgraduate School,
and USC. CENIC also provides connectivity to leading-edge institutions
and industry research organizations around the world, serving the public
as a catalyst for a vibrant California.